Excerpt: 'Starry Night' by Nina Mason
HEA shares a look at Nina Mason's new paranormal romance, Starry Night, the latest in her Knights of Avalon series.
About the book:
Can these star-crossed lovers bridge two worlds?
British aristocrat Vanessa Bentley has beauty, fame, and fortune, but she gets no respect for her decision to become a paranormal investigator. Determined to prove the naysayers wrong, Vanessa ventures to the misty moors of Caithness, Scotland. There stands the immense Castle Barrogill, where a vampire is rumored to be stalking the dungeons—a vampire Vanessa is determined to find. She'll just have to get past the resident shape-shifter…
Callum Lyon is the gorgeous reclusive astrologer and faery knight who guards the castle. For free-spirited Vanessa, seducing him proves to be easy. After all, he was once a breeding drone to a Queen. But astrologically, their differences are harder to overcome. Will Vanessa's mission—and Callum's secrets—be more than their burgeoning love can take? Or will flesh—and blood—win over the ghosts that haunt them both?
EXCERPT
"Have a look at your adoring fan over there," Duncan said, leaning in. "I do believe she's visually undressing you."
Callum looked up from the book he'd been signing—Political Astrology Through the Ages, his latest in a series on the subject. The fan in question stood by the refreshment table, clutching the book to her chest. Was she undressing him with her gaze? Och, nay. Judging by the heat of her stare, he was already stark naked in her mind's eye.
He'd seen her in the third row, giving him equally heated looks while he delivered his lecture. She seemed vaguely familiar, but he couldn't seem to place her. With a shameless ogle of his own, he traced the long, smooth contours of flesh and muscle beneath the posh black pantsuit she wore. She was tall and slender with an angular face and a wide, full mouth that stretched into an inviting smile as his gaze met hers with a palpable sizzle. Her eyes shimmered like rare Burmese sapphires. Holding her stare, he dispatched his psychic probes.
Particles of her life presented themselves—odd bits of a puzzle whose pieces didn't quite fit together. Smart parties and balls. Environmental protests. Political rallies. Charity affairs. A string of unwelcome suitors.
Looking deeper, he found an older man whose ambitions mattered more than his family and a woman who cared only about her social standing.
Her parents.
Oh, aye. He could feel it, feel everything. She was the quintessential "poor little rich girl," the black sheep of the blue bloods who'd been given everything money could buy while being deprived of the things she wanted most. Love, affection, and approval, mainly. Consequently, she'd erected barriers to protect herself.
Not unlike himself…
Find out more about Nina and her books at ninamasonauthor.com.